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Dec
13

Laugh

I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose.
-Woody Allen

This is the fourth post in a series expanding on 20 Things I Learned from My Toddler.

When food tastes really good, laugh.

Toddler’s don’t usually concern themselves with personal development, planning or working to improve their circumstances. They take things as they come. If the moment gives them pleasure, they smile and laugh. If the moment is unpleasant to them, they cry.

The irony in this is that, as adults, we work very hard to bring pleasure into our lives. Yet on average, we enjoy pleasure much less frequently than toddlers do. We reserve our emotional expressions to revel in our plans if they are successful. We reserve joy for weekends, holidays and vacations.

This drive to work for improvement has been a positive force in the progress of our species and many of us as individuals. But it also has a tendency to blind us from the joy that is right in front of us.

As adults, we don’t have parents feeding us and planning our lives for us, but it is still possible to find joy in the moment whether it’s a Monday morning starting a week of hard work or the first day of a long, relaxing vacation.

Today’s Lesson from a Toddler

Pay attention to what is right in front of you. When food tastes good, when you hear a song you like, when you splash water on your face and it feels good, when you make a silly mistake, when you accomplish a small task, when someone or something, no matter how small, makes you feel good, laugh.

About the author

Danny

I am Danny Kohn, writer and designer for this site and owner, software engineer and consultant for Inspirations Software Design. My three greatest passions in life are sharing time with my family, software design and sharing inspiration with others. I have the incredible privilege of being able to spend a significant amount of time every day doing each of those three things. I am a single father of Tristen, our 6 year old son. It has been such an incredible joy to watch him grow up and learn so much. Everything he does and says overwhelms me with adoration. We have a wonderful evening ritual of reading books together in a beanbag chair. Nearly every night, we have a laughing attack together. I smile and giggle constantly in his presence and feel truly inspired.

Permanent link to this article: http://beinspiredeveryday.com/2007/12/13/laugh/

1 comment

  1. Shirley says:

    I’m so glad I stopped by your site today. These are great lessons for anyone to remember. (Aren’t kids just the best teachers? – -Along with dogs of course, can’t count out those fuzzy bodies of love either.) :0)

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